Who May Ascend & Who May Stand Before The Lord?

Psalm 24.4 says,

One Who has not lifted up his soul unto vanity - Unto that which is "vain," or which is "false."

This expression might refer to one who had not devoted himself to the worship of an idol - regarded as vain, or as nothing 1Corinthians 8:6; Isaiah 41:24; Psalm 115:4-8; or to one who had not embraced that which is false and vain in opinion; or to one who had not sworn falsely, or taken the name of God in vain, Exodus 20:7.

The probable meaning is, that he has not set his heart on vain things, or that which is false. He has sought after substantial truth, alike in the object of worship, in that which he professes to believe, and in the statements and promises which he makes to others. He aims to secure that which is true and real. He is in no sense "carried away" with that which is unreal and false.

~ Albert Barnes

My prayer is that God will protect our faith in Him, so that we will not get swept away by anything that is vain and false in our devotion to Him. I'm praying that we will not be too easily satisfied, but maintain a long, deep, and abiding desire for Christ.

Waking Up To Tozer

"It is important that we trace our benefits back to their source and express our thanks to the One from whom all blessings flow, rather than merely to feel a vague stirring of gratefulness that results in nothing real. I once lived with a fine old couple, neither of whom was a Christian, and I was impressed with the profound sense of gratitude they felt for everything they possessed. When the winter winds moaned through the trees and made the old house tremble, the old man would smile and say, Ah! How good it is to have a warm place to sleep on a night like this. And the mother would often speak of her large family, now grown and scattered: How grateful I am that they are all healthy and all mentally sound. I am so thankful. Their gratitude was genuine. Of that there could be no trace of a doubt, but I often wondered who was the recipient of it. Whom were they thanking? They never said.

The irreligious world has its own way of reacting. When things break fortunately for a businessman, an athlete or a politician he will slap his hands together and shout, Great! Wonderful! He is thanking someone; but whom?

It could be that the old couple of whom I speak were actually meaning to express their thankfulness to God, and that the modern man who shouts his pleasure at his lot in life secretly feels his indebtedness to God; the trouble is that they were and are ashamed to direct their gratitude pointedly to One with whom they are not acquainted. They flee like Adam and hide among the trees of the garden rather than face up to the God they know they have offended. Fear of being thought queer sometimes leads people to express religious ideas in generalities instead of in concrete terms."

"speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;" ~ Ephesians 5.19-20

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